


Soft and Beautiful

by SoftboySigma



Category: Polygon/McElroy Vlogs & Podcasts RPF
Genre: Body Worship, Carboys - Freeform, Carboys AU, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Mild Language, Planar Gods, shipboys
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-07-13
Updated: 2017-07-13
Packaged: 2019-06-27 07:46:39
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,448
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15681087
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SoftboySigma/pseuds/SoftboySigma
Summary: A body love fic. Griffin is struggling with an assignment from work, and Nick comes over to help him calm down.Takes place in a psuedo-Car Boys AU called Planar Gods, in which Nick is a young god with his own realm and Griffin is a human on Earth with an office job.[Mirror for a fic previously published on Tumblr.]





	Soft and Beautiful

Griffin tapped his pencil against the edge of his keyboard anxiously, keeping double time with the ticking of his clock. When he stopped, he could still feel the vibrations of impact in his fingers. He quirked them with a flourish and drew them under glasses, sighing tiredly. Papers were strewn to his sides, covering every available surface in a ten foot radius, with red pen scribbled through at least three fourths of them. He was really starting to feel the crunch of this deadline. With a bit of effort, he took a moment to look up from his monitor and glance at his clock.

6:52.

Where the hell was Nick? He was supposed to be here more than half an hour ago. 6:15, Griffin said. 6:15, let’s meet up at my house and try to knock out this… performance review? Self-evaluation? It was some dumb corporate “Be the Best You!” exercise type thing, but it wouldn’t matter _what_ it was called if Nick never showed the fuck up. Griffin huffed and looked up at his clock again.

Tick. Tick. Tick.

The pace was ever faithful, quiet and steady. It wasn’t going to speed up just because Griffin’s nerves were demanding it. It wasn’t going to get Nick here any faster. So Griffin decided, well, he just needed to settle in and get this done then, worrying about Nick wasn’t going to do him any good right now, which is what made it so much worse when—

DING DONG.

He nearly jumped out of his skin scrambling to get to the door. “Coming, I’m coming!” He yelled, laptop thrown haphazardly onto a nearby paper stack.

On the other side of the door was a rather sheepish looking Nick. He had his hand behind his head, blushing pink, as picture perfect as every bad movie cliché Griffin had ever seen.

“Hi Griff. Uhm, sorry I’m late. I got a little tied up in traffic and like, timezone bullshit. I was in my plane and didn’t realize what time it was for you until it was, uhm. Too late.”

Griffin tilted his head, nose scrunched. “I told you to set an alarm! You know the time doesn’t sync up right, and you thought you’d be fine anyway?” He wrapped an arm around Nick’s shoulders and dragged him inside. “You never do! You literally always mess up the timing!”

Nick laughed, “yeah, I know, I know. You’re right, you’re always right.” He wrapped his arm around Griffin’s waist as they walked towards the living room. “It’s soooo annoying, always having to listen to you. _Ugch_.” He kissed Griffin on the cheek. “But as long as I—oh, what the fuck.” He peeled away to circle around the front of the couch. “Wh. Griffin what,” Nick put his hands in front of him, palms up, “happened here.”

“Oh, uhh. Y’know. Perfectionism.”

“Griffin.”

“See, this is why I called you.” Griffin wandered over to where Nick was standing and leaned on his side, gesturing vaguely to the mess in front of him. “This is never gonna fuckin’ get done if I don’t have someone here to help me edit myself down. Not, not my work, _me_. I do this every goddamn time.”

Nick glanced over. “You’ve done this work project thing before?”

“Well, no, not this project specifically, but things like it. This isn’t the first time we’ve had to ‘find our strengths and incorporate them into our team!’ and it certainly won’t be the last. I just,” Griffin leaned down to start organizing piles into stacks, and Nick mirrored his movements, “it’s just really tripping me up for some reason. I’m just, getting _lost_ in all these _fucking papers_. I don’t… I don’t know what the fuck I’m doing.”

“…Hey,” Nick put a hand over Griffin’s, stilling his work. “Are you okay? You… I mean, you know I don’t mind helping you, and I’m more than happy to be here, but this is kind of unusual, even for you. Normally, you just ask me to feed you chips while you work.”

Griffin laughed, “that was one time!”

“Or you make me kiss your neck so you’re motivated to work faster.”

“Nick!”

“But my point is,” Nick put down his own stack of papers and shifted his weight. “You mostly keep me around for company or something, not editing. Especially because you know I’m not even human, I haven’t had a job like you, so I’m not good for much else. Is there… is there something about this project that’s bugging you?”

Griffin looked down, rubbing his fingers sheepishly. “I… I dunno. There’s a prize for this one?”

“And the prize makes it more difficult than other ones?”

“Yeah. Well, no. Well.” Griffin shoved his hands under his glasses again. “Normally they just blast our evaluations in our fucking files and they tell us ‘good job!’ and that’s the end of it, y’know? But now there’s like, an _incentive_ or whatever the fuck, so they’re gonna be _reading_ these things and _judging_ them, and—“

Griffin stopped when he felt Nick take his glasses off his face. Shortly after, he felt fingers around his wrists, bringing his hands down to chest level.

“Squeeze my hands, alright?” Griffin nodded. Nick gently rubbed at the insides of his wrists. “I’m right here for you, okay? I’m right here, and I’m gonna help you get this done. We’re gonna get you through this just fine. Take a breath.” Griffin nodded again, inhaling deep and sighing loud. “Good,” Nick smoothed his fingers over Griffin’s knuckles, sneaking his forehead a quick peck at the same time. “Let’s get our butts on the couch and you can walk me through what you’ve got so far.”

“God, I don’t even know where to start,” Griffin groaned, flopping into place. “There’s a little true or false question box that we can probably skip right over. That’s just, uh, bullshit ‘I think stealing is bad!’ type stuff. What I’m struggling with is like,” he paused to pick up and knead Nick’s hands again, “the personal shit. The ones where you’ve gotta write about yourself. Because, like, I know I’m a good person! I know I have some good strengths and talents, but, putting them into words is just. Really hard, I guess.”

Nick let go of Griffin for a moment to nudge him to the side and get comfortable. “But there’s prompts and stuff, right? Questions to answer? Even if it’s broad, might as well start with question one of those.”

“Yeah,” Griffin sighed. “The first one is like,” he scrolled to the top of the page on his laptop, “the question is ‘What would you describe as your best quality?’ which is like, okay, vague. But doable, right? Just give a vague ass answer in return, done deal. But, what I’ve got so far is that I’m… patient. And my reasoning is that I deal with problems for as long as they take until I find a solution. Which is not only a blatant fucking lie, but also just makes me sound like I never take initiative and I’m always willing to be walked over, or, or I’m stuck on one thing forever. But I don’t know what else the fuck to say? I’m funny, I guess, great, I can crack jokes around the water cooler, what good does that do?”

“Well,” Nick pressed his lips together and propped his arm on Griffin’s shoulder, playing with the back of his head. “I think you’re on the right track, but you’re not really at the root of it, y’know? It’s not _just_ that you’re patient, Griffin. It’s that you’re _passionate_ , because you care.” He picked up a few papers and straightened out their edges. “You sit in a tiny little cubicle and sift through email after email trying to fix problems and complicated stuff I’ll never be able to understand – day in and day out with a smile on your face – because you care _so fucking much_ , Griffin. Even when it comes to dumb projects with bad rewards, you care. And that’s not a bad thing. Look.”

By now, the mess in the living room was compressed into a few neat piles stacked on the floor.

“See? Any of the stuff that you feel is bad can be cleaned up. And you’re still the same Griffin! Still passionate, still trying very hard, and still getting a lot of good work done.”

Nick turned to look at Griffin’s face and was surprised to see him a deep shade of red, hands fidgeting with the letters on his keyboard. Nick smiled and continued to just play with the back of his neck, letting him take his time with his thoughts. 

“…You really think so, Nick?”

“I know so, Griffin. That’s half the reason why I fell in love with you.”

Griffin shoved Nick’s face to the other side of the room. “Nick! C’mon Nick, this is serious!”

“I _am_ serious!” He laughed behind Griffin’s fingers. “You’re a very passionate guy! And I just kinda fell in love with that. How could I not, y’know? I mean it!” Nick brushed Griffin’s arms to the side and did his best to reclaim his spot upright on the couch. Fortunately, Griffin let him slide back into place pretty easily. But he still shot Nick some playful glares.

“Mmm. What about the other half though?”

“The what?”

“Before,” Griffin gestured, “you said my oh-so-fiery passion was _half_ the reason why you fell for me. What’s the other half?”

“Well, I didn’t say ‘fiery,’ for the record, but,” Nick paused. “Honestly? The other half is your puppy belly.”

“ _Nick_.”

“I’m serious! I promise!” Nick shimmied his hands under Griffin’s shirt, pushing his face into the nape of his neck. “You… you’ve got a good shape. Soft and, uhm. Honest, I guess is the word. Down to Earth and so human.” He hummed, leaving lazy kisses along his jawline.

Griffin got quiet and fidgety in the hands again. “…You really think so? Everyone’s human though. Or. Mostly, not you, and some other people. Still getting used to that.” He tiled his head to the side for ease.

“Yeah, but you’re special,” Nick smiled, holding Griffin’s sides and pressing his thumbs into the bottom of his ribs. The soft give felt good, but the squeak Griffin gave was even better. Taking advantage of his boy’s previously demonstrated malleability now, Nick scooched Griffin to the side, laptop off his knees. It alleviated some physical awkwardness and allowed for more room to play.

“Lots of people are soft. But you feel… I dunno. Something about the way you carry yourself. You feel safe.” Palms flat, he smoothed his hands up from Griffin’s sides, to his belly, to his chest, savoring the dips in his body. “…You’re really beautiful, y’know? Can you put that on your evaluation?”

“You know I can’t,” Grififn said, keeping his eyes firmly on the oh-so-interesting texture of the far wall. “It’s, uhm. Unprofessional.”

“Hmmm?”

“Like, not safe for work… and stuff.”

“Oh, you think I’m trying to get naughty with you?” Nick was having fun.

“No! Just. Y’know. Can’t talk about it at the office is all. You know. You know.”

Nick curled a hand against the small of Griffin’s back, forcing him to arch up a bit, and held the underside of his knee with the other. Griffin met his guidance easily, folding up like a lawn chair underneath him.

“Well that’s boring. Do you have any idea how many papers I could fill out with that junk?” He paused for a moment to watch Griffin turn red again, a nervous grin giving no credence to his case. Nick didn’t give him the chance to reply.

“I’d start with your thighs, I think,” letting the hand supporting Griffin’s knee drift down along the outside hem. “They’re dependable. And not just for you. How often do we have movie nights where you just let me fall asleep with my head in your lap? Like, for real? You’re always, always there to let me sleep on you. And I can’t even begin to tell you how much that means to me.” He used the heel of his hand to squeeze little circles into Griffin’s skin, falling into an effortless rhythm. For just a moment, Nick pressed his cheek into the inside of Griffin’s knee and hummed. “Soft, and always there for me. I could say that about all of you, I guess.”

“H-How’s this supposed to help me, though? Didn’t I call you over to help with my paper for real editing or something?” Griffin’s voice came out a lot braver sounding than even he was expecting, despite the beginning shiver. Nick looked down at him with mock offense.

“This isn’t helping? I’m not helping?” He sat back and dramatically flipped his hair. “Oh, I just thought that after all the work you’d already put in, you’d like a little break to clear your head.”

“I do like it! I d-do. I just, wasn’t, uhm, expecting it is all. I thought we’d get… straight to work,” Griffin said, a slight mumble overtaking his confidence.

Nick took his hands away, putting them in his lap a little sheepishly. “Oh. Uh, I’m. I’m sorry. Should we just get back to the questions and stuff?”

“No, I—“ Griffin huffed— “like. Just,” he grabbed Nick by the wrists and pulled his hands onto his stomach. “I’m just being difficult. I don’t… I don’t mind, you’re good to keep going,” face red.

It took Nick a moment to blink his hesitation away. “You sure?”

“Yeah, I’m sure.”

“…Good. Feels better knowing that you’re into it. I should have asked sooner.” He slid his hands under Griffin’s shirt again.

“You’re fine. I would have said something if it really bothered me.” Griffin sighed and settled into the couch, doing his best to let go of his anxiety.

“Mmm. My big strong boy,” Nick hummed, his fingers closing as he pulled down again. “What’s after thighs, though? Hips maybe? Because they’re connected? Or,” he pushed his hands around to Griffin’s back, pressing into the divots of his shoulder blades. “We could jump around, do that thing where you save the best for last.”

“What, like every English essay ever?” Griffin laughed, only to feel Nick jab his fingernails into his back. “Ow!”

“Jerk. I’m trying to be sensual!” Nick scrunched up his nose and earned another laugh from Griffin. But it was worth it. With his hands on Griffin’s back, he could feel the vibrations of his voice, his laugh, and _God_ was it beautiful. The slight rise and fall of his breathing a quiet, captivating reminder of just how alive this boy was even when he was silent. Nick softened his fingers into the inside his shoulder blades again and smiled.

“I just love you a lot,” he said. “Love feeling the muscles in your shoulders. Love how soft your skin is. Love that I,” he moved a hand to Griffin’s spine, “gotta press a little bit to feel the bumps. You’re just, perfect? You’re a good balance.” Letting the silence hang, Nick drifted his hands up and down Griffin’s back, simply admiring his body.

At the same time, Griffin made a few of his own little advances. Draping his arms around Nick’s shoulders. Pulling him a little closer. Pressing his nose into the crook of his neck. Nothing that would steal the focus, but just enough to let Nick know he was both willing and appreciative.

“I love you too,” he whispered quietly. And for a second, he wasn’t even sure Nick heard him. He’d barely said the words, and Nick had kept on with feeling over his back. Light touches on his waist where he could feel the slight natural pinch and harder presses over his sides to count the bones of his ribs. But when he pulled back and cupped Griffin’s face in his hands, he knew. 

“I know that I should…” Nick stopped, eyes flicking down while he thought. Griffin watched his expression intently. “It’s usually more romantic to show and not tell, but. It’s kinda hard for me, in a weird way. I’m so used to going back and forth with you and riffing off your jokes and stuff. Talking is kinda my default, and, I just wanna compliment you all the time?”

Griffin smiled. “I don’t mind compliments. If that’s what’s easiest for you, you can do that.”

“Yeah, but.” Nick thumbed at Griffin’s cheeks, an ever-so-slight scratching noise resulting from barely there stubble. “I want there to be a variety so things are special for you. I don’t wanna do the same things over and over and have our relationship get boring. Which is like, wow, good time to talk about this, when I was trying to help you unwind, but.” Nick sighed, a little bit pink himself now. “I know, I know, you’re right. You’re always right. So annoying.” He leaned in and kissed Griffin gently, hooking his fingers around the back of his ears. Griffin fell a bit forward when they finally parted.

“I haven’t talked about your face yet, have I?” Nick tilted his head. “Not quite the same as the rest of the body, but I figure I should still mention it.” With one hand, Nick held onto Griffin’s chin, thumb over his lips. With the other, he slowly brushed through his hair. “Mmm. You’ve got a good face. Good round nose, good round cheeks. And a beautiful smile, God, I love the how your cheeks smoosh up and drown your eyes when you smile.”

Griffin took to staring to the side again with a nervous grin. Not that what Nick was saying was particularly embarrassing or anything. Quite the opposite. It was grossly saccharine and endearing as hell, but _fuck_ if it didn’t just remind Griffin how deeply, terribly in love he was with him. He was kindhearted and actively praising him and Christ if Griffin looked him in the eye he might just explode. Nick’s voice interrupted his runaway thoughts.

“Speaking of smoosh, though.” Humming, Nick planted a quick kiss on Griffin’s lips, moving down to kiss his chin, then his neck, then his collarbone. From there, he pushed up Griffin’s shirt and the boy himself backwards. “Griffin. Griffin. I love your belly so fucking much.”

“Aww, Nick—“

“I’m serious. I’m so fucking serious.”

“I know you’re serious, and I’m loving it! But like, c’mon Nick, it’s just my stomach. And it’s just got a bit of chub, that’s nothing special.”

“Griffin.” Nick kissed at the edge of his chest and continued on his downward path to stop just below his belly button. But instead of finishing his thought, Nick simply hung there for a while. Lips laying lightly against his skin, barely tickled by Griffin’s fuzz. His breathing again there to remind him how _alive_ he was. Nick littered Griffin’s belly with kiss after kiss, smiling at the dumb feeling of his nose poking impressions into his tum as he went. “…You’re just so beautiful. I can’t say it enough. You’re so beautiful.”

“...Thank you. Truly, thank you.”

“Not a problem, Griff.” Nick grazed his teeth against the bottom of Griffin’s ribs.

“H-Hey!” Griffin yelped, bonking Nick over the head. “Right after I said thank you and everything! Mean!”

Nick smiled and pushed himself up from his spot, helping to pull Griffin up as well. “Just wanted to feel,” he said with a cheeky laugh. After smoothing Griffin’s shirt back down he pulled him by the back of the neck for a quick kiss.

“Mmm. We should probably get you to work again for real, though.” Nick pointed to the clock with his eyes, and Griffin followed.

8:30.

“God, has it really been an hour and a half? Doesn’t feel like it.” Sighing, Griffin pulled his laptop back onto his knees. “…Do we really gotta get back to work? I was having a good time.”

“Tell you what,” Nick got cozy and rested his arm to play with the back of Griffin’s head again. “You work, and I’ll stay here to mack on you until you need me for input and stuff. And after we work through a hard part we can take a little reward break. That sound alright?”

“I mean, it sounds like you get the best of the deal, not doing a lot of work there, buddy.” Griffin squeezed Nick’s knee to make him flinch, laughing when he got exactly what he wanted. “But it also sounds like I get a lot of lovin’ out of it, so I guess it evens out.”

“Mmm. Deal then?”

“Deal.”

**Author's Note:**

> Not as big a fan of this one anymore. The setup is really contrived and the execution is sloppy/floats around, but like. I dunno, it's still fun so it earns itself a mirror.


End file.
